Steam Regional Pricing Explained
Why the same game costs different amounts in different countries, what that means for an all-time low, and how to use US price history if you buy elsewhere.
Steam lets publishers set different prices in different countries, and most do. The reasons are economic: purchasing power varies enormously between, say, the United States and Argentina or India, and regional pricing exists to make games affordable where a US price would not be. From a buyer's perspective it means the "same" game can be a very different deal depending on where the store thinks you are.
Your Steam region is determined by your billing address (and, for new accounts, your IP address). Valve has tightened the rules over the years to prevent VPN-based region hopping; circumventing them violates the Steam Subscriber Agreement and can result in a permanent regional restriction on your account. We do not recommend it.
What ATLGames tracks
ATLGames records Steam US pricing in US dollars. Every all-time low, badge and figure on the site is computed against US price history, and prices shown are US prices. We do not currently track other regions, and we would rather say so plainly than show a badge computed against the wrong country.
Using US history if you buy elsewhere
The useful fact is that publishers almost always apply the same discount percentage across regions even when the underlying prices differ. So while the dollar figure on an ATLGames badge will not match your store, the signal usually transfers: if a game is at a Tied ATL in the US at 50% off, your region's 50% price is very likely at or near its own floor. Where it does not transfer is when a publisher changes a regional base price on its own, which happens occasionally after currency swings.
- Compare percentages, not prices. The discount is the portable number.
- Check your own store before buying. The link on every card opens the Steam page, which shows your region's price.
- Some games are not sold in some regions. If a deal appears here but the game is missing on your store, that is a publisher restriction, not a tracking error.
Why we stay US-only
Tracking one region well, with verified expiry and a complete history, is more useful than tracking nine regions badly. The data sources and the update cadence are described on the methodology page.
More guides
- How Steam Sales Actually Work
Valve runs the event; publishers set the price. Why the same game is 75% off one sale and 50% off the next, the three tiers of discount opportunity, and what the six-week rhythm means for you.
- All-Time Lows vs. Percentage Discounts
Why the discount percentage is the least useful number on a sale badge, what the New / Tied / Near all-time-low signals actually mean, and how to read them.
- When Are the Major Steam Sales?
The four seasonal sales, the themed fests in between, which months really carry the discounts, and whether waiting for the next sale is worth it.
- How to Spot a Fake or Misleading Discount
Recently raised regular prices, perpetual "sales", bundle math that hides the real cost, and the one chart that exposes all of them.